Hi
I have seen several requests for information regarding upgrading the hard drive of the PVR80 but nobody has really responded.
Surely there must be lots of people out there who have upgraded?
In the past I upgraded a Skybox from 40Gb to 120 Gb (advised that this was the maximum size - not sure why), this worked apart from the time remaining information being wrong. This was logical since when I changed the drive all Skyboxes were 40Gb, since the introduction of the 160 Gb drive, my upgraded drive was read accurately.
Is this the same situation with the Digihome I wonder? I would expect little problem going up to 160 Gb but would there be a problem above this?
I have put 320 Gb into a Tivo PVR, but the drives first had to be prepared in a PC so that the full size could be utilised (Tivo uses a Linux o/s), again perhaps putting more than 160 Gb into the Digibox would be simply a waste as it may not be recognised.
These questions could be answered simply by anyone out there who has actually done it. I only got my Digihome yesterday, I've just successfully set up the twin record but not yet crossed the hard drive bridge.
Please help
Stephen

I did read (in these forums somewhere?) that someone was having problems with their box after updating the software, and took out the original hard drive, then reformatted it in their computer using the NFTS file system, put the drive back in the PVR box, and then did a format after refitting the drive, which cleared the problem. This suggests that nothing is held on the hard drive which could cause problems if the hard drive was swapped, but I have not experimented myself.

Inquisitive and bored test pilots wanted

Personally, I find 80GB of space enough at the moment, so I shall not be applying for the position

Digifusion, Thomson, Inverto, Tevion etc have a limit of 137GB due to the chipset used on the mainboards. 120GB is therefore the maximum disk size to not have any waste and 160GB plus simply allows the 137GB.

I think the Digihome will be the same as its of a Vestel breed like the Tevion.

Thanks for your replies.

I did have the 137 GB problem when I installed 2 X 160Gb in the Tivo, hence I had to prepare them in my PC, after which the full size was recognised.
In this case, however, since there is a 160Gb version I would have thought that the 137Gb would have been overcome?

PS

I notice that in discussions regarding the software download starting on 3rd Feb that the box must be on MUX 1, what on earth is that!!

Stephen

Try this : http://www.dtg.org.uk/retailer/dtt_channels.html

It just means (I think) that if you are doing a manual update, the box must be set to BBC1, BBC2, or BBC3 when doing the update, in order to receive it, as they are transmitted on MUX 1. Perhaps someone can correct this if wrong.

So from what I'm picking up then, MUX 1 is simply Multiplex 1 and there is a list of channels which comprise it, any of which will do during the upgrade. BBC 1,2&3 being among them.

Well you live and learn, thanks for your replies.

Still not sure about the hard drive situation though

I have copied this from the following link by Mike (Micday) who has fitted a 160GB drive in place of the 80GB.
http://www.pvruk.co.uk/reviews.cfm?a...0%20,%20PVR160


I've just installed a 160GB Hitachi Deskstar in my PVR80
using the following procedure.
1)If it's an old HD i.e. out of your PC, first run FDISK and remove all partitions, if new do nothing.
2)Open the case as per the pictures/links in this thread.
3)Remove factory fitted drive.
4)Install new drive, ensure it is set to 'master'
5)Take this opportunity to fit the new drive the other way up i.e. PCB facing the base of the case, as shown in the links from this thread. Also if you are paranoid, like me, fit a fan. This should stop the HD over heating in the future.
6)Press and hold the 'OK' button on the front panel, turn on the PVR, do not release 'OK' until the display reads 'reset', after some 'drive checks' there will be a prompt on the screen indicating that the HD requires formatting..... select 'Yes'.
7) Once complete you will be guided through the 'First time installation' wizard.
8)Check your hard drive settings, should read 160GB ish (if you used a 160 drive)

All done,
Hope this helps anyone brave enough to have a go themselves.

Mike.

Does anyone know if there is a certain spec of drive you need to fit? The bave post mentions the Hitachi but would any type do? Is ther a specific prm or buffer size etc...

Thanks for this info Cossall.

Do we know if the time remaining indicator remains accurate after increasing the size?

Anyway we're half way home- all we need now is someone who has put in a drive bigger than 160Gb

If you have a look at the pvruk site, (on the following link, but a long way down - von trapp
2006-12-28 07:20:44) von trapp tried a 250GB drive, but it only detected 160GB, so it seems the limit is set at 160GB. Also Mike has updated the fitting a 160GB hard drive topic.
http://www.pvruk.co.uk/reviews.cfm?a...0%20,%20PVR160

Thank you very much, cossall and Micday, so informative and helpful!

However, please excuse my myopia , but I can't find the pictures/links on that thread, I wonder if a link could be posted here?

Here's hoping,

parthena

All the information about updating the firmware, and links to pictures of the inside of the box, are on the following link on this forum. Physically replacing the hard drive should be very easy as it is the same as in a computer, but if doing this, remember to make sure the drive is set to master

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...d.php?t=492057

This morning I installed a samsung sp 2514n 250gb hard drive
and after testing it I quickly removed it after an hour or so .
The machine started to freeze and the hard drive was quite hot and it became totally unstable hence the removal not recommended in the asda dual pvr
funny thing is I had a look at the power specifications of both disks and they almost identical
Last edited by icutedave : 05-02-2007 at 18:34

Its strange; I have tried various hd's in my digihome. Maxtor, Samsung and WD. None of them give stability. They work after format but box freezes when trying to start a timed recording. I wonder what is special about the deskstar? Digifusions use Maxtors (special type for streaming). I wonder if anyone can shed any light on this.

I've been trying to swap the drive on a PVR80 and I cannot get it to work. After putting the new drive in and turning the unit on 'Starting' shows on the display, then 'Disk Check' for a second or two then the unit just turns itself off.

Anyone with any ideas on what's wrong? I'm stumped.
Last edited by Johneboy : 17-02-2007 at 18:59

Try pressing and holding in the 'OK' button on the front of the box whilst powering up, this should then give the option to format the hard disk to the correct settings.

I can't remember where I read it but my understanding is that the integrated electronics in a "normal" Hard Drive will ask for the data to be resent if it detects an error. As the Freeview data is live realtime streamed, resendiing the data is impossible so there's no point the drive asking. By not asking, the drive is able to work less hard, generates less heat and places a lower load on the power supply. If a "normal" drives asks but gets no reply, I'm not sure how many times it asks before giving up - meanwhile, I expect more real time data is in danger of being lost.

The "special" drives have a 3-letter suffix but I can't remember what it is

John.

I had tried that and it seems not to make a difference. The option to format the drive never comes up.

You may need to take the drive out and remove any partitions through windows computer management. The drive in the Digihome and the Goodmans is a Samsung SPN0842N. I think this is a standard IDE drive.

It is set up with two partitions by format (you can get to format from menu code is 0000). I think it is Linux?

First Humax PVRs used Maxtor ACE drives (the ACE being special ignore read errors for video streaming).

Digifusion used Maxtor special drives but I forget the code.

I don't know if this will be of any help, but as far as I can gather, a special IDE drive was developed for the PVR boxes which not only used less power, but also ran quieter. Putting a normal drive from a PC into a PVR box results in undue strain on the power supply, which results in over heating and failure. It has also been noted that even putting a 160GB drive in place of an 80GB HDD in a box such as the Digifusion, can result in power supply failure. I guesse the only way around this would be to either power the drive seperately, using the power supply supplied with an IDE to USB adaptor, or replace the supply for one which can supply more power. Such a power supply and drive(intended primarily for the Digifusion) can be obtained from

http://www.xtendedplay.co.uk/contact...9f06e52be5dae2

The drives could also be obtained from Maplin's a little while ago.

I haven't been able to read all the threads, so I am sorry if this info just repeats what has gone before.

Tim.

[quote=Toen]You may need to take the drive out and remove any partitions through windows computer management. The drive in the Digihome and the Goodmans is a Samsung SPN0842N. I think this is a standard IDE drive.

QUOTE]

That sounds about right, I read somewhere that if a disk had been used previously in a computer, it had to be cleared of any partitions in the computer using fdisk, then formatted in the computer with NTFS, before reformatting in the Digihome box.
Correction/amendment to the last part, the NTFS formatting in the computer was done by someone having problems with their Digihome box, then after formatting with NTFS, they reformatted it in the box and the drive worked OK.
Last edited by cossall : 18-02-2007 at 16:10

This site lists the differences between PVR and PC hard drives and has somne data sheets for different makes.

John.

John's link points to "Weaknees.com", a well respected Company as far as I know, specialising in Tivos. I have a Tivo in which I installed 2 X 160 Gb hard drives around 2 years ago. This was a relatively big job for me at that time as it involved using my XP PC to set up drives for Linux (Tivo) and I had to do a fair bit of research; anyway at no stage do I ever recall a suggestion to use anything but standard IDE drives. The factors to consider were mostly to do with quietness of operation and reliability.
If ever a PVR would need a "special" hard drive then it would be a Tivo as they record 24/7, I opted for Maxtor drives - perfect so far and lots of others went for the quieter Samsung but nobody ever mentioned the "streaming" aspect although I understand that it sounds logical.
Is this another case of the Emperor's new clothes?